3 Purpose The purpose of this document is to provide information relative to the implementation and operation of the Emergency Alert System within the State of Illinois. Consult Part 11 of the FCC rules for specific information about EAS regulations and requirements. Introduction The Emergency Alert System (EAS) provides warning to the general public when emergencies occur that threaten the life or property of the residents of Illinois. The EAS is a co-operative system that relies on the participation of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA), Illinois radio and television broadcasters, and the Illinois cable television operators. It provides specific procedures for the broadcast stations and cable television operators to disseminate WARNINGS to the general public in event of an emergency in part of or the entire State of Illinois. This EAS plan may be activated in response to imminent or ongoing threats to life and/or property. Such threats include but are not limited to toxic materials release, civil disturbance, wide area power outages, evacuation alerts, and severe weather. Acceptance of or participation in this plan shall not be construed as a relinquishment of individual station program control or to prohibit an individual broadcast facility from exercising independent discretion and responsibility in any given situation. Re-Broadcast Authority is given to all broadcast stations and cable operators relaying EAS emergency communications. The authority granted to individual broadcast facilities and cable television operators to manage and exercise discretion in the broadcast of EAS information and instructions is detailed in and supported by Part 11 of the F.C.C rules and regulations. General Considerations Under this plan, Illinois has been divided into 11 local areas. Each of the 11 local areas has two or more key broadcast stations that will disseminate regional information during an emergency. All broadcast stations and cable operators in these local areas will monitor the assigned key broadcast stations for their area. These stations are identified as Local Primary (LP) 1, 2, or 3. In addition, all broadcast stations and cable operators are encouraged to monitor as many other sources of emergency information as they consider practical. All broadcast stations and cable operators are also encouraged to monitor the National Weather Service (NWS) radio station in their area for weather alerts and Amber alerts. The Local Primary stations are not required to re-transmit weather bulletins nor will IEMA broadcast weather bulletins on the state emergency communications channel. In order to improve the ability of emergency information to reach the public in a timely manner, EAS operations should be considered to be a web rather than a chain. This means that broadcast stations and cable operators should rely on the LP-1 & LP-2 stations for state and national emergency information but local emergencies, such as developing weather conditions, should be Page 3

4 monitored directly by each broadcast station and cable system. An example of this is the Amber Alert System. Each broadcast station and cable operator can obtain Amber Alerts from the NWS weather radio. General Operating Procedures Local Primary 1 (LP-1) and Local Primary 2 (LP-2) stations will monitor each other. In addition, LP-1 & LP-2 stations will monitor the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) radio network and the National Weather Service (NWS). When practical, both LP-1 & LP-2 should monitor WLS-AM or the National Public Radio (NPR) Primary Entry Point (PEP) for Presidential Alerts. LP-1 & LP-2 stations should have their EAS filters set to immediately re-transmit any emergency message originating from IEMA that carries the Civil Emergency event code CEM. LP-1 & LP-2 stations are not required to re-transmit weather bulletins but are authorized to do so in accordance with individual station policies. All other broadcast stations and cable operators will monitor the LP-1 & LP-2 stations. Monitoring the National Weather Service is not required but highly recommended. All broadcast stations and cable operators are required to re-transmit any message using the code EAN (National Emergency). It is recommended, but not required, that they also re-transmit any message received from the LP-1 or LP-2 using the event code CEM. Broadcast stations other than LP-1 or LP-2 may also choose, but are not required, to re-transmit weather bulletins from the National Weather Service. Activation The Governor of the State of Illinois is the only official who may authorize activation of the State Wide Area Emergency Alert System. Any other officials must request and receive authorization for activation through the Governor. The code CEM will be used exclusively by IEMA. The Illinois State EAS Plan will be activated using a dedicated EAS encoder located at the IEMA Emergency Operations Center (EOC). This center is linked to all LP stations via the IEMA statewide radio network on MHz. Local Plans This document details the state plan only. Each of the 11 areas of Illinois can develop local plans that relate to their particular part of the state. The local plans will concentrate on providing a means for authorized persons at the county or city level to reach the public quickly through broadcast or cable outlets in the event of a local emergency. Appendix E is a list of registered local plans with Internet links to the issuing agencies. Activation under local plans will us the code LAE exclusively. Required Weekly Test Each broadcast station, cable operator, and IEMA will transmit the header tones and end of message tones as described in Part 11 of the F.C.C. Rules once per week. Radio and TV Page 4

5 broadcasters must send the Required Weekly Test (RWT) at random times and does not need to include a voice announcement. Required Monthly Test IEMA will transmit a Required Monthly Test (RMT) on its statewide emergency radio network on the first Tuesday of the month in accordance with the following schedule: January February March April May June 10:15 am 12:15 am 10:15 am 12:15 am 10:15 am 12:15 am July August September October November December 10:15 am 12:15 am 10:15 am 12:15 am 10:15 am 12:15 am All LP-1 & LP-2 stations are encouraged to re-transmit the RMT within 10 minutes of the time it is received from IEMA. All other stations will re-transmit the RMT within 60 minutes of the time it is received from either the LP-1 or LP-2 stations. The Required Monthly Test issued by the IEMA EOC will contain the following elements: 3 bursts of digital RMT header code A 10 second recorded message containing the following text: This station is participating in the required monthly test of the Illinois Emergency Alert System. This system was developed to provide information to the public during emergencies. This was a test. 3 bursts of end of message tone Page 5

6 ACTUAL ALERT Activation Script and Format State Activation Procedures: IEMA EOC will transmit the alert to all LP (1/2/3) stations via the IEMA Emergency Radio Network on MHz. The alert will contain the following elements: 3 bursts of digital Civil Emergency Message (CEM) code A recorded message less than 2 minutes in duration containing the following text: This is an activation of the State of Illinois Emergency Alert System. The Governor has activated the Emergency Alert System due to (nature of emergency). 3 bursts of end of message code IMPORTANT: The EAS system will store and forward a message of only 2 minutes or less in duration. Any messages longer than 2 minutes will be truncated. National Public Radio Link At this time, there is no statewide link available to Illinois LP-1 and 2 stations for Presidential EAN activations. LP-1 and 2 stations are encouraged to arrange to monitor a NPR station that has install a NPR satellite cue connection to the NPR s station s EAS unit to facilitate EAN activation for their area. LP-1 and 2 stations that can successfully monitor WLS-AM may use that PEP station as a source of EAN activation. AMBER Alert-Child Abductions A link for Child Abduction Alerts issued by the Illinois State Police (ISP) has been established between the ISP and the National Weather Service (NWS). Upon authorization of the ISP, the NWS will transmit an alert with the Child Alert Emergency header code CAE for all broadcast stations and cable operators to relay to the general public. Appendix F is the alert procedure between the Illinois State Police and the National Weather Service. EMNet EMnet is a dedicated PC terminal with software for alerts directed to an emergency alert manager. At this date this product is being rolled out to County EOCs, E911 centers and 19 LP stations. Long term concept is to include the EMNet as a component in local area plans. Page 6

17 Appendix E Local Plans Chicago E911 Local Plan DuPage County Kane County Will County Sangamon County No Website Available McLean County Champaign County Other plans may exist but they are not registered with IEMA or the SECC Page 17

18 Appendix F ISP & NWS Amber Alert Procedure s Illinois State Police and the National Weather Service Amber Alert Procedure s Illinois State Police (ISP): The ISP will review all AMBER Alert requests from Illinois law enforcement agencies before disseminating the information. The ISP will review AMBER Alerts provided by surrounding states and initiate these alerts in those instances deemed appropriate. The ISP will determine the appropriate regions of the state for the distribution of the alert. The ISP will distribute pertinent AMBER information in an electronic format. (The current practice includes the use of the EAS system followed by a facsimile) The ISP will provide a termination message once the AMBER investigation has been resolved. National Weather Service (NWS): The NWS will install and maintain a software terminal at the ISP communications center. The NWS agrees to broadcast any AMBER alerts to NOAA weather radio transmitters in areas specified by ISP. The NWS will transmit the scripted AMBER alert as a data product similar to a tornado warning. The NWS has agreed to do a closed circuit monthly AMBER alert test from ISP to NWS. The NWS will use either a concatenated voice, or at their option, a live announcement (manual broadcast). The NWS will only accept AMBER alerts cleared by the ISP. All other requests will be forwarded to the ISP. The NWS will not transmit the 1050-hertz warning alarm tone for AMBER alerts. Page 18

19 Illinois Broadcaster Association (IBA)/State Emergency Communications Committee (SECC): In order to avoid duplication of alerts, it is recommended that designated LP1 and LP2 stations refrain from initiating Amber alerts. The exception to that rule is that if an LP1 or LP2 station receives a blast fax of an Amber alert from ISP but does not receive an Amber alert on its NWS weather radio, the LP station should then initiate the Amber alert 30 minutes after receiving the blast fax. LP1 and 2 stations may elect to retransmit alerts received from NWS immediately if they wish because a retransmission will be ignored by stations that have already received the alert via NWS. Stations that are not monitoring NWS will receive the retransmission as a first alert. Page 19

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